Safe from the Long Arm of the Law

By Alan Frampton

How many people know that mock funerals were once conducted in Cheshire as a cover for illicit smuggling? Or that the inhabitants of Overmarsh had to build their homes without using even a single nail? Believe it or not, these facts are linked to the days when the Earl of Chester offered outlaws the chance to live in the county without interference from the law.

Until the early Middle Ages the privilege of 'sanctuary' had been restricted to parish churches, cathedrals, and other consecrated buildings, all of which offered protection of a very limited nature. The area of safety often extended no further than the cemetery wall, behind which fugitives would remain for up to 40 days as a temporary respite before fleeing the country.

The Earl however, envisaged a far more comprehensive and lucrative arrangement. On his orders three lonely and inhospitable areas of Cheshire were set aside as places of sanctuary where those fleeing from the law could reside in safety - after payment of a suitable fee. At Overmarsh near Farndon, strangers could live for a year and a day, and '.....form dwellings, but without building any fixed house by the means of nails or pins, save only booths or tents to live in'. The limits of safety were clearly marked by a rough ditch across which fugitives had to scramble, often with their pursuers close behind.

At Rudheath a similar situation existed, much to the distress of the local inhabitants. Before long the place had acquired an evil reputation and by the time outlawry finally ceased, the district was populated by large numbers of unpleasant and dishonest folk who thought nothing of breaking the law to further their own ends. When there was a tax on salt for example, the Rudheathians lost no time in applying their talents to smuggling, even to the extent of loading the local hearse with contraband. With a respectable number of 'mourners' in attendance, the subsequent procession proved an ideal cover for their unsavoury activities.

At the third sanctuary on Hoole Heath, less than three miles from the walls of Chester, large numbers of makeshift shelters began to appear, their unwashed occupants idling away the hours around the camp fires. Nearby, where the unfenced roads crossed the moorland, it became customary for the authorities to set up a gibbet on which convicted criminals were executed, their bodies frequently left to rot as a warning to others.

At Fair times men from the Heath flocked to Chester to take advantage of the custom, which granted them temporary freedom from arrest provided they committed no new crime. In 1340 it was re-affirmed that 'during the time of war with Wales, all persons, being in the peace of the King of England and the Earl of Chester ....(could)... have refuge on Hoole Heath, with their goods, necessaries, and beasts, for a year and a day.'

The privilege of sanctuary appears to have been frequently used, particularly by women and those under age. At a time when severe punishment was the rule rather than the exception, rapid flight was often the only means of avoiding injustice. Serfs arrested during a wild dash for freedom or men caught stealing in a desperate attempt to feed their families, could expect harsh treatment if the due processes of the law were allowed to take their course.

In 1513 a writ was issued ordering the Mayor and Sheriffs of Chester '...to stay all proceedings by Thos Grymesdiche against Rd. Daynor, who had placed himself in the King's advowry'. Even the clergy occasionally found themselves in difficulty, although these gentlemen usually lost no time in pleading the privilege of their cloth. One interesting case is recorded in the 16th century where the accused shows his shaven crown in support of his plea.

In a Charter to his Barons, Ranulf de Blundeville generously allowed strangers to settle on their estates, provided that the payments, or advowsons, were paid directly to him. Edward I during the time the Earldom was in the hands of the Crown, delegated to the Abbot of Vale Royal Monastery the privilege of sanctuary and protection of felons on all his lands. This right was successfully maintained some years later.

Although the concept of sanctuary was not finally abolished until the 17th century, during the reign of Henry VII an Act of Parliament confined protection to churches, hospitals and seven towns - Wells, Westminster, Northampton, York, Derby, Launceston and Manchester. Anyone guilty of murder, rape, highway robbery, burglary, house burning or sacrilege would in future be excluded and only those persons committing minor offences would be allowed to enjoy the benefits. Even so, Manchester quickly asked for the situation to be reviewed and in the following year Chester was substituted, much to the distress of the authorities.

The Mayor, Hugh Aldersey and Mr Foulk Dutton immediately began drawing-up a petition for submission to the King.

This document pointed out in the strongest terms that '....Chester, being a port town and situated on the borders of Wales was a very unfit place for a sanctuary of malefactors, and that it would be attended with many inconveniences to merchants and inhabitants.' As a result of this plea the 'privilege' was transferred to Stafford, to which town those persons enjoying the benefits of sanctuary were transferred under the protection of the constables.

Debtors too had peculiar privileges which were not removed by the Act of Parliament. Any man who came before the Court of Exchequer at Chester and swore to pay his debts as soon as possible, was free to move about the city unmolested by his creditors. The limits of this freedom were recorded in some detail. The debtor could '....go from the Northgate upon the Waules on the West side of the new towre, and from the Northgate forward upon the Wauls on the Est side of Newton Tower, and go to hear service at St John's without the Northgate, and also towards the Cornmarket to the new hovses built of St Anne's, which standyth amydest the Boll Yarde ...'